Chapter 30: Unexpected Guests (4)

A terrace slightly away from the banquet hall where people's eyes could not reach.

The spacious terrace, which overlooked the scenery outside the castle, was quiet as if it was in a different world from the banquet hall filled with people's voices.

Although the moon and stars illuminated this place instead of the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling of the banquet hall, the small lights were more than enough to see the panoramic view outside the castle.

A man who was standing alone there, looking at the towering Mount Pelioros far away, took out a small bottle from his pocket and opened the lid, then poured the unknown liquid inside into his mouth.

The liquid went down his throat and instantly warmed up his body. Even though the chilly wind of the Merohim blew, it was not enough to make him freeze, but the reason he drank this viciously high alcohol was not just to warm his body.

"Do you want to have a sip too?"

He passed the bottle to the boy standing next to him and started talking.

Even in the dark night, the boy's crimson red hair was clearly visible. The boy politely declined his offer and stood next to him, staring blankly at the night sky. The man briefly licked his lips at the boy's behavior and began to drink the remaining alcohol in the bottle.

"Richard… In times like this, you should at least drink like this to feel comfortable."

"…How did you know that, Father?"

The man did not answer the boy's question. Just like before, he was still holding the bottle in his mouth.

The boy smiled faintly at his father's behavior and stood there looking at the stars for a while before leaving the terrace without saying a word.

"Such a pitiful boy…"

What kind of family was Erthuwen?

There were only three dukes in the empire that could be said to be the ruler of the continent. Even if they go beyond the framework of the empire, it was one of the most prestigious families that hold the Mage Tower of Twilight. There were few things in this world that such Erthuwen couldn't obtain.

However, even though Richard was born as the heir to such a family, he was a child who did not want anything from the family. If one were to judge, it was just a foundation for him to go to a higher level like any other wizard. It was very rare for Richard to ask for help from Franz, so much so that it could be counted on only one hand.

Nevertheless, he was a child who had reached the 5th level, which was called the wall of wizards, solely with his own power at a young age. As a father and a teacher, how could Franz not admire him?

That was the first time he had ever felt affection for someone.

Franz had never been interested in anything other than magic, but now he was paying attention to something else. Although their conversations were embarrassing and limited to short exchanges whenever they met, nothing was as enjoyable to him as seeing his son's expression change constantly.

Elena, who captivated Franz's heart, was also a genius wizard with a talent comparable to Richard's, and that was why the news of Elena's engagement came as a big shock to both Franz and Richard, as Franz also thought of Elena as his daughter-in-law.

Even Erthuwen, who seemed to have everything, still had things they couldn't touch.

If Elena had been an ordinary aristocratic daughter, Franz would have used all means possible to make her marry Richard. However, However, Elena was Edelweiss, not the daughter of an ordinary aristocratic family, and her fiancé, Damian, was not just any common count, but a Kraus.

Even if Franz Erthuwen could build a country if he wanted to become a king, it would be impossible to mess with Edelweiss and Kraus.

Above all, Franz knew that even if he somehow managed to get Elena, Richard would not have wanted it. In the end, all he could do was complain about the current situation and hope that his son could bear the pain of a broken heart.

"I'm sorry, but what can I do with something that's not meant to be… But, thinking that he stole it, I suddenly get annoyed."

"What do you mean by stole it?"

"Are you here..?"

Franz, who did not think that an answer would come to his thoughtless self-talk, was not very surprised to hear an answer.

The one who answered his self-talk was, of course, Joachim, who he had noticed from the beginning.

There was neither annoyance nor anger in his eyes as he looked at Franz. It was rude for him to step into the banquet hall even though he wasn't invited, but the relationship between the two wasn't so tight that that was unacceptable.

It was Joachim who suddenly broke into Kraus's castle a few days ago and teleported the carriage in front of everyone, so he had no right to be angry or scold Franz.

"How dare you to cast a spell in my castle as you please. You've become cheeky, Franz."

"I just wanted to have a quiet conversation with your son-in-law. Well, we couldn't exchange many words though. Is he so taciturn because he takes after someone?"

"At least, not like you."

At Joachim's answer, Franz laughed quietly.

Although he tried to offer Joachim a drink, the bottle in his hand was already empty. However, the alcohol was not the only thing that was in his hands.

"Surprisingly, he backed down more easily than I thought. Thank goodness, I was worried that he might cause a disturbance at the banquet hall, just like you."

"You bastard. Do you have to say that in front of me now?"

"What does it matter? The person involved isn't even here right now."

"I'm here. You crazy bastard."

Franz frowned at Joachim's words, then coolly took a sip of the fruit wine in his hand. As the sweetness of the fruit wine spread in his mouth, his face began to relax. However, he was still looking at the moon with sad eyes.

"It would have been nice if Elena had been with Richard."

"I'll tell you in advance, I've never forced my daughter to make any choice."

"I know. I know that. It just wasn't meant to be. But I can't help but feel sad. I also wanted a cute and kind daughter-in-law. Damn it. Arthur has a lot of blessings."

Richard and Elena had met more than once, as they were both among the seven Tower master's children who were close friends.

The two had developed a relationship that could be called friendship, and that was why Franz was able to have such expectations. However, Elena chose to be engaged to Damian, rather than Richard.

'What can one do about the choice of the parties involved?'

As he thought about this, Franz naturally remembered the face of the boy he met today. The boy who looked exactly like his old friend. As he remembered his meeting with Damian, the glass in Franz's hand rippled slightly.

"Indeed…as they say, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. That guy wasn't ordinary either."

"Of course. He's the man someone's daughter has a crush on."

"Hey, tell me honestly. What did you say to Elena?

Damian Kraus.

The meeting with the boy who had become engaged to Elena instead of his own son left a lasting impression on Franz.

That boy was not just a figure with the same appearance as his friend from memory. Even his chilly gaze and the aura that made his skin crawl were reminiscent of his friend on the battlefield. Despite being only sixteen years old, the boy reminded Franz of his friend in the war.

If he had not stopped the boy from drawing his sword at that moment, he could not easily imagine what would have happened afterward. No, even though he knew it, Franz's pride as a wizard who had reached the rank of Archmage did not allow him to think about what happened afterward.

Franz unconsciously held his neck and tried to deny the possibility.

'It must be simply an illusion…'

No matter how he looked at it, he was only sixteen.

It seemed that he had achieved quite a high rank as a knight, but even so, it was ridiculous to think that a young boy who was not even a sword master threatened the life of an archmage who has reached the 8th rank. It was only fair to assume that he was intimidated by the very resemblance to that non-human fellow.

However, even thinking like that hurt Franz's pride.

"Anyway, it's all because of that bastard, Arthur."

"You have to stop blaming everything on that guy. How many years have you been doing that?"

"Be quiet… it's all his fault. Anyway, Arthur has never been helpful in my life. My father always told me to make friends with good people."

Even though he said that, Joachim, who remembered that Franz was the guy who he always hung out and had the most fun with during his academy days with Arthur, looked at Franz coldly.

Maybe it was because he kept drinking.

Starting with those words, seeing Franz's bad relationship with Arthur, which started when he was in the academy, Joachim pours alcohol into Franz's empty glass instead of using detoxification magic to get rid of drunkenness as always.

Franz would suffer from a hangover the next day, but what could Joachim do about it? It was the fault of the guy who made friends with the wrong person, as he said.

***

Although this banquet was held with me as the main character, the time I was in the banquet hall was not very long. The original purpose was to announce my engagement to Elena, so there was no reason for me to continue to be in that noisy space.

If I stayed still at the banquet hall, I would only create unnecessary trouble by being surrounded by people.

The position of Kraus's deputy head was not a position where I could casually strike up a conversation, but there were always people who want to talk to me because I had a young appearance.

However, the reason I didn't want to leave the banquet hall was because I thought Elena might be enjoying the banquet.

In the original novel, she appeared to have no special feelings about the banquet, but Elena, standing next to me, seemed to be in a better mood today than usual, so I was reluctant to ask her to go outside.

"Damian. Shall we go outside?"

"Elena. I'm fine."

"What's fine? It's all over your face right now."

Was it? Even if I looked at my face in the glass, I couldn't find anything strange, but she seemed to be peering into my heart and revealing my innermost thoughts.

Elena had always been able to understand my feelings immediately, but as time went by, I began to suspect that she had some sort of psychic ability related to this.

"And don't think that I'm being considerate. I didn't want to stay at the banquet hall either."

Although Elena said that, I couldn't believe it right now.

After all, she hadn't shown any signs of dislike once since she entered the banquet hall. But when I said I was fine again, Elena looked at me with a pouty face as if she didn't like it.

"Is Damian planning to make me a liar?"

"Oh, no. Why would I do that?"

"Then why do you keep refusing even though I say it's okay?"

I hadn't expected Elena to speak with such a face.

Did she really not like the banquet?

However, at the banquet hall, she was always smiling, and it was hard to believe that she had faked it.

I couldn't give a clear answer to this contradictory situation, so I told her the truth.

"I'm sorry. I thought you were enjoying the party because you kept smiling."

"Yes? What is that…"

Elena seemed to be thinking hard about something for a moment at my answer, then suddenly turned her head back and held out her hand.

"Da-Damian must have been mistaken."

'Oh. I must have been mistaken.'

It was too obvious to think that.

I decided not to mention why she was able to laugh while attending a banquet she didn't really like. I didn't want to show that side of Elena to others, so I took her hand without saying anything.

We left the banquet hall just like that.

We could hear people lamenting behind us, but that didn't stop us.

It was Elena who took the initiative in the destination. Unfortunately, I was largely ignorant of the geography of the Winter Castle, and all I knew was the way from the banquet hall to my room and the way to hers.

The roles had completely reversed from when I was staying at the Count's Castle.

We didn't have much time, so Elena probably wasn't going to show me everything in this vast winter castle.

Then where was she taking me?

Strangely, walking with her without knowing anything made my heart flutter.

I entrusted myself to her with either mere curiosity or some other emotion buried deep within my heart.

After walking for some time, we arrived at a door.

Elena, standing in front of the door, had a face that seemed to anticipate what kind of expression I would make. I wondered what kind of place it could be for her to have such an expression. The curiosity within me quickly dissipated as she opened the door wide.

"Here…"

"What do you think? Damian. This is my favorite place in the Winter Castle."

Inside the room was a world different from the outside.

Various colored flowers bloomed together in a way that was different from the climate outside. This was a small flower garden, created in the Winter Castle so that flowers could be grown in the cold, barren land of the north.

I knew this place.

"Well, to Damian's eyes, it may seem a bit lacking."

"That's not true. It's very beautiful."

Elena introduced me to the place, speaking as if she were embarrassed, but I was genuinely impressed by the environment that had been created here.

Yes, because this was her own flower garden that Elena decorated and created herself without anyone's help.

Even though Elena was an excellent wizard, I knew how much effort it would take to cultivate this on her own. This place was not just a flower garden, but the fruit of her efforts and her own stronghold.

I found it difficult to express in words the emotions that I felt when I stepped into the space that was only allowed for Elena and her family in the novel.

Elena led me and started explaining the things here one by one, and I quietly listened to her words and admired the small flower garden.

Although it was smaller in size than the garden in Kraus's lord's castle, I never thought that it was lacking. Because the feeling it gave was different, it was as if we had entered a cozy room.

I felt even more nervous than when I had entered her room.

Was it because this was the only place where she could find peace after being exhausted in the original story? Or was it because I knew the significance of this place for her, that I could not easily calm my trembling heart at the thought of sharing her precious memories?

However, it seemed that I was not the only one who had such thoughts. Elena said to me with a trembling voice.

"Do you remember what I talked about last time? I said I would tell you about the things I love, just like you did for me."

"Yes. I remember."

"This flower garden was created when I first learned magic. At first, it started with a few wildflowers growing here in Merohim. After that, as my skills improved, I was able to create more diverse environments, and now it looks like this. It became what it is now."

She smiled as she looked at the flowers blooming in the lowest flowerbed. I could easily tell that it was the first flowerbed that Elena had created. And at the same time, I could imagine how the young girl had tended to it.

Elena, who had come out of her memories, smiled brightly at me.

"So, I wanted to show it to Damian. I wanted to put our memories together in this place where my memories are also preserved."

Her shy face as she talked about her wish felt so lovely to me.